Middle East

France Urges Lebanon to Expand Weapons Control Amid New U.S. Backing
France Urges Lebanon to Expand Weapons Control Amid New U.S. Backing

France’s foreign minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, on Friday called on Lebanon to accelerate efforts to centralize weapons under state authority and expand security measures beyond the Litani River, as Beirut seeks to consolidate fragile stability following months of regional escalation. Barrot’s remarks came during a high-level visit ...

Trump Says US Talks With Iran 'Very Good', More Negotiations Expected
Trump Says US Talks With Iran 'Very Good', More Negotiations Expected

US President Donald Trump said that Washington had "very good talks" on Iran after the two sides held an indirect dialogue in Oman, pledging another round of negotiations next week. Iran, for its part, said it expected to hold more negotiations with the United States, hailing a "positive atmosphere" during a day of talks in the Gulf ...

 Who Rises Next? Sunni Perspectives on the Muslim Brotherhood and President Al-Sharaa
Videos Who Rises Next? Sunni Perspectives on the Muslim Brotherhood and President Al-Sharaa

In Lebanon today, the Sunni streets are largely leaderless, and many are searching for new direction. This Is Beirut went on the ground in Sunni areas to ask residents about the Muslim Brotherhood’s designation as a foreign terrorist organization and whether the Brotherhood or President Ahmed al-Sharaa can fill the leadership void. Many ...

U.S. Pulls Troops From Northeastern Syria Amid SDF-Damascus Integration
U.S. Pulls Troops From Northeastern Syria Amid SDF-Damascus Integration

The U.S. has begun its withdrawal of troops from the Shaddadi base in northeastern Syria this week as part of a broader drawdown of direct U.S. military presence in Syria.  This event occurred amid the incorporation of civilian and security sector responsibilities to Damascus to replace the SDF and the U.S. as the primary force monitoring the ...

White House Official to TIB: 'Nothing We Heard Today Reduces Our Concern About Iran’s Current Trajectory'
ExclusiveWhite House Official to TIB: 'Nothing We Heard Today Reduces Our Concern About Iran’s Current Trajectory'

In an exclusive statement given to This is Beirut, a senior official in the White House expressed growing impatience with Iran regarding today’s nuclear talks. The official said that “we did not go into these talks expecting easy answers, and nothing we heard today reduces our concern about Iran’s current trajectory, especially ...

Syria Says It Arrested Terrorist Cell and Seized Hezbollah-Linked Drones and Missiles in Rif Dimashq
Syria Says It Arrested Terrorist Cell and Seized Hezbollah-Linked Drones and Missiles in Rif Dimashq

Syria’s Ministry of the Interior announced that it cracked down on terrorist cells in the Rif Dimashq Governorate and captured military hardware and weapons linked to Hezbollah, according to a report from Nidaa al-Watan.  In the operation, internal security forces arrested all members of the cell and seized Hezbollah drones, missiles, and ...

U.S. Expands Sanctions on Iran’s Shadow Fleet Following Nuclear Talks in Oman
U.S. Expands Sanctions on Iran’s Shadow Fleet Following Nuclear Talks in Oman

The U.S. State Department announced on Friday that it would impose new sanctions against Iranian individuals and assets with a stated goal of interrupting the capital flow that the regime uses to “support terrorism” domestically and abroad. The statement expresses that the “Department of State is sanctioning multiple entities, ...

Senior Hezbollah Official Wafiq Safa Steps Down as Qassem Reshapes Leadership
Senior Hezbollah Official Wafiq Safa Steps Down as Qassem Reshapes Leadership

Wafiq Safa, the head of Hezbollah’s liaison and coordination unit, resigned from his position on Friday as Secretary General Naim Qassem has pushed to reshape the organization’s leadership, sources close to Reuters confirmed. Safa has maintained a senior position within Hezbollah since 1987 and was appointed to his role as a powerful ...

Iran FM: U.S.-Iran Talks Held In a “Very Positive Atmosphere”
Iran FM: U.S.-Iran Talks Held In a “Very Positive Atmosphere”

Iran and the United States held indirect, high-level talks in Oman on Friday over Tehran’s nuclear program, in their first such encounter since the June Israel-Iran war, amid sharp disagreements over the agenda and growing fears of a wider regional conflict. Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the talks were held in a “very ...

Lebanon and Syria Ink Deal on Prisoner Handover
Lebanon and Syria Ink Deal on Prisoner Handover

Lebanon signed an agreement with Syria on Friday to hand around 300 convicts over to Damascus, a move seen as key to helping turn a new page in ties between the countries. Overcrowded Lebanese prisons host more than 2,200 Syrians held on various charges. Many of them are still awaiting trial, while hundreds accused of "terrorism" or ...

NYT: Satellite Imagery Shows Iran Repaired Missile Sites Hit in 12-Day War
NYT: Satellite Imagery Shows Iran Repaired Missile Sites Hit in 12-Day War

The New York Times reported on Friday that satellite imagery suggests Iran has rapidly repaired several ballistic missile facilities damaged during last year’s 12-day war, but has made only limited fixes to major nuclear sites struck by Israel and the United States. The report suggests that the regime's immediate priority is a working ...